Missouri has joined Texas in preemptively activating the state’s National Guard ahead of the “No Kings” protests planned at about 2,000 sites across the nation on June 14 against President Donald Trump.
Both Republican-led states followed Trump’s lead after he tapped the California National Guard to respond to protests in Los Angeles.
“While other states may wait for chaos to ensue, the State of Missouri is taking a proactive approach in the event that assistance is needed to support local law enforcement in protecting our citizens and communities,” GOP Missouri Gov. Mike Kehoe wrote on social media June 12 in announcing his executive order activating the Missouri National Guard.
More: Planned ‘No Kings’ protests grow in number after LA militarization: What organizers expect
Kehoe’s order declares a state of emergency in Missouri “due to civil unrest.”
The move is another sign of the increasingly militarized response to unrest surrounding Trump’s policies. Responding to demonstrations against ICE raids, the president deployed the California National Guard in Los Angeles over Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom’s objections, and also sent U.S. Marines.
Trump’s decision to bypass Newsom and federalize the California National Guard drew protests from Democrats. Newsom described it as the act of a “dictator.”
Republican governors in Texas and Missouri are activating the Guard on their own.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott announced June 11 that the Texas National Guard would be deployed throughout the state “to ensure peace & order.” The move came after protesters in Austin clashed with police, and ahead of more planned protests in the state.
About 2,000 “No Kings” protests are scheduled across the country on June 14, when Trump is staging a large military parade in Washington D.C. on the 250th anniversary of the U.S. Army. It’s also Trump’s 79th birthday.
A map on the “No Kings” website shows dozens of protests are planned in Missouri and Texas.
More: Governors aren’t on same page about using National Guard for ‘No Kings’ protests
With immigration enforcement protests spreading across the country and millions of Americans expected to demonstrate on June 14, governors are having to weigh calling in the National Guard in case of violence versus chancing having Trump do it for them.
New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, a Democrat, told USA TODAY that Democratic governors are speaking with one another about being prepared if Trump deploys their state National Guard over their objections.
Lujan Grisham said she expects the New Mexico protests to be peaceful and managed by local law enforcement. She isn’t preparing the Guard in case protests turn violent because that isn’t their job.
The National Guard has long been used by governors to help police protests.
When George Floyd, an unarmed Black man, was murdered by a Minneapolis police officer on May 25, 2020, governors in 28 states had deployed the National Guard by June 3, 2020, to help contain demonstrations that erupted across the country, according to the Department of Defense. Among them was Newsom in California.
California recently sued to stop Trump from deploying the National Guard in Los Angeles. A federal judge blocked the mobilization, but the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on June 13 temporarily halted the judge’s order.
Contributing: Sarah D. Wire, Jeanine Santucci, Davis Winkie
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Missouri joins Texas, taps National Guard after Trump LA move
